Hey guys, what is the best opening to a novel you've EVER read? Doesn't matter when you read it, or wether it was a printed book or on Tapas. What is that one line, or that one paragraph that hooked you? That one thing in style, flow, rhythm that just stabbed you?

Mine is below, from Pride and Prejudice:

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."

And also Anna Karenina:

"Happy families are all alike; unhappy families are unhappy in their own ways."

> When a traveler in north central Massachusetts takes the wrong fork at the junction of Aylesbury Pike just beyond Dean's Corners he comes upon a lonely and curious country.-- H.P. Lovecraft, The Dunwhich Horror

Out on the balcony, when Reginald kissed Diana's lips, her knees went weak. Slowly, he pulled her top down, exposing her soft, unyielding breasts. Just the sight of those breasts made Reginald's penis very hard. His penis was of considerable size, and now beads of sweat slowly ran down his penis, making it glisten like a strong swimmer, fresh from out of the pool. It was a fantastic penis, that seemed as strong as a horse's leg, yet as delicate as a flower wrapped in silk. What a grand, grand penis. Diana's nipples...

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way."Charles Dickens: A Tale Of Two Cities

It is hard to understand nothing, but the multiverse is full of it. Nothing travels everywhere, always ahead of something, and in the great cloud of unknowing nothing yearns to be something, to break out, to move, to feel, to change, to dance and to experience – in short, to be something.Terry Pratchett - Raising Steam

Translation:Mastered by desire impulsive,By a mighty inward urging,I am ready now for singing,Ready to begin the chantingOf our nation's ancient folk-songHanded down from by-gone ages.In my mouth the words are melting,From my lips the tones are gliding,From my tongue they wish to hasten;When my willing teeth are parted,When my ready mouth is opened,Songs of ancient wit and wisdomHasten from me not unwilling.

I don’t know about best, but as a kid what made me want to read more was,"If you are interested in stories with happy endings, you would be better off reading some other book.”—A series of Unfortunate Events

When I read this I was like wtf? And my curiosity drove me to read the entire book thereafter... these others are also pretty good.

Call me Ishmael.

Never finished the book, though.

It was a pleasure to burn.

One of my favorite books of all time

In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. “Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.”

And of course someone has already mentioned A Tale of Two Cities and Pride and Prejudice. IMO if you can think of the opening instantly when you think of the book, or recognize it immediately without being told where it is from, it's a great opening

I'm quite fond of the opening of Clive Barker's 'The thief of always' (but more for nostalgic reasons)

"The great gray beast February had eaten Harvey Swick alive. Here he was, buried in the belly of that smothering month, wondering if he would ever find his way out through the cold coils that lay between here and Easter."